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American
Chemical
Society
Green Mountain
Local Section Home Page

Summer in Vermont
Welcome to the
ACS Green Mountain Local Section Home Page. We are
located in beautiful
Vermont and are one of the 189 Local Sections of the American Chemical
Society. ACS Local Sections promote public awareness of chemistry by
being involved in community outreach programs and by working with
students of chemistry and science. Our meetings and dinners provide a
opportunity to network and socialize with other Vermont chemists, and
to hear some excellent speakers. If you are a chemistry professional or
educator, or a student studying chemistry, please consider joining us
at our next event.
Sincerely,
Fiona Case

Local
Section November Meeting
Buckyballs, Tiny Machines and Nanoputians: The Miniature World of Nanotechnology
A talk suitable for a scientifically curious technical and non-technical audience
at the Rutland High School Lecture Hall,
Tuesday November 10th, starting at 5:30 pm.
“Nanotechnology”
is an often cited, but misunderstood term describing a wide array of
modern applications at the interface of chemistry, physics, biology and
engineering. Jeff Byers will discuss some of the more chemical aspects
of nanotechnology, examining the connection between molecular
structure, function, and whimsy as they apply to nanotechnology.
ACS Green Mountain Local Section member Jeff Byers received his B.S. from the University of Rochester, and his Ph.D.
in 1984 from Dartmouth College. After a postdoctoral research position at the
University of Utah, he joined the faculty of Middlebury College (VT) in 1986.
He is currently Professor of Chemistry and has previously served as Chair of the
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Prof. Byers’ primary teaching
responsibilities are in organic chemistry and general chemistry. Other subjects
taught include advanced integrated laboratory (inorganic synthesis techniques),
instrumental analysis, senior thesis seminar, and freshman seminars (including
freshman composition). His research interests are in synthetic organic
chemistry, organic free-radicals, organoselenium and heterocyclic chemistry, and
he has mentored over 80 Middlebury College
undergraduate research students over last 23 years. Jeff
and his students are have regularly presented at Regional and National
ACS meetings, and they appear as authors on 19 papers from his laboratory.
Prof.
Byers’ is also known for his presentation on "Love, Pain and Chocolate"
- one of the highlighs of the Chemistry Enthusiasts Program at
NERM2008, and for his performance as Professor Snape, the Hogwarts
potions teacher, during the 2008 Intercollegiate Quidditch for Muggles
World Cup, hosted by Middlebury College. During his half-time show he
blew hydrogen into soap bubbles; as they floated about, he ignited them
with a candle. In another display, he filled rubber gloves with
acetylene and lit the fingertips making a flaming jet into the air. The
event was featured in C&E News.
Outside of Chemistry, Jeff enjoys spending time with his wife and children,
particularly on family outings to ski or hike in the Vermont woods, and is an avid amateur pianist.
Green Mountain Local Section ACS December Meeting
“Holiday Party”
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Swift House Inn in Middlebury
Details:
We will be again hosting our annual Holiday Party at the Swift House
Inn on 25 Stewart Lane in Middlebury. Please join us from 6 to 9 p.m.
for the festivities with free hors d’oeuvres, one free drink, and a
cash bar thereafter. All members are cordially invited to attend with
one guest. This event is a wonderful opportunity to network and
socialize with other local section members.
RSVP:
If you are interested in attending, please RSVP no later than December
2 to Beth Medeiros at (802)770-7238 or by e-mail at
greenmntacs@yahoo.com.
Directions:
From Rutland: Take
Route 7-North to Middlebury. Proceed through town. At the end of town,
you will come to a traffic light with a Mobil gas station on your left.
Turn right at the light onto Stewart Lane. Once on Stewart Lane, park
in the lot across from the main house.
From Burlington:
Take Route 7-South to Middlebury. Just before you enter Middlebury,
there is a traffic light with a Mobil gas station on your right. Turn
left at the light onto Stewart Lane. Once on Stewart Lane, park in the
lot across from the main house.
We look forward to celebrating the holidays with you!

Middlebury Marble Quarry Open House 2009
On
Saturday October 17th Local Section members had the opportunity to
explore some real "hands-on" inorganic chemistry at the OMYA quarry
open house in Middlebury
Fiona Case and Benjamin in the quarry
Martin Case and
Benjamin playing with the trucks
Photos from the 2008 event are HERE
Local
Section October Meeting
Greening the Chemistry Curriculum
Was held on Tuesday October 13th
at Norwich University
Green
chemistry in the US can trace its major roots back to the early 1990s
with the passage of the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 and the
subsequent formal focus on green chemistry by the EPA in 1991. Since
this time research and development in green chemistry/technology has
gained considerable momentum. Many companies and academic research
faculty now recognize the environmental and economic benefits that
environmentally benign chemistry has to offer. If we are to broaden the
base of those that view chemistry with a "green tint," then green
chemistry must be infused into conventional chemistry courses that are
offered in the traditional college chemistry curriculum. It should be
"second nature" for our students of today and the chemists of tomorrow,
to view all chemistry with pollution prevention in mind. Ways in which
we have infused green chemistry into the curriculum will be addressed.
This discussion will include the green chemistry web based modules that
have been developed with the aid of a Camille and Henry Dreyfus
Foundation grant, and the book "Real-World Cases in Green Chemistry"
funded by the ACS/EPA. In addition we will focus on the ACS/EPA Green Chemistry Educational Materials Development Project.
Presented by Dr. Michael Cann, Univeristy of Scranton.
Michael Cann was born and raised in the Saratoga region of upstate NY and
attended Marist College where he earned his BA in chemistry in 1969. Mike
received his MA and PhD in organic chemistry from SUNY Stony Brook in 1972 and
1973, he was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Utah (1973-74), and a
lecturer at the University of Colorado-Denver (1974-75). Since 1975 he has been
a faculty member at the University of Scranton. He is also the co-director of
the environmental science program and the director of medical technology. His
areas of interest encompass nitrenium ions, nitrogen heterocycles and green
chemistry. His interests in green chemistry consist of microwave assisted
organic reactions, room temperature ionic liquids, and green chemistry
education. He has taught a number of courses including general chemistry,
organic chemistry, environmental chemistry, chemical literature and writing,
chemistry seminar, topics in environmental science, internship in environmental
science and graduate courses in mechanistic and structural organic chemistry.
Cancer Research Seminars in Plattsburgh
Northern
New York ACS Local Section member Vinay Likhite is organizing a series
of seminars and discussions on cancer research at the Clinton Community
College in Plattsburgh, New York. The group meets every third Wednesday
of the month from 6:00pm to 7:00pm to discuss the fascinating story of
how the sciences of chemistry, biochemistry, biology are being used to
diagnose, treat, and even now prevent cancer. Coffee will be available
and the group will adjorn to a local restautant for dinner after the
meeting. We are warmly invited to participate.
ACS Project SEED Students at UVM
Sierra
Costanza and Blake Ingram, seniors at South Burlington and Burlington High
Schools, respectively, undertook research projects in the Department
of Chemistry at the University of Vermont this summer as ACS Project SEED
Students, sponsored in part by the Green Mountain Local Section. Sierra worked
under the direction of Prof. Rory Waterman investigating new, efficient ways to
form chemical bonds to the element phosphorus, and Blake worked with Prof.
William Geiger investigating electro-catalysis. Amsal Karic, a Project SEED
student from 2008, returned to Waterman’s laboratory for a second summer of
research before beginning studies at the University of Rochester this fall.
We got good feed back from all of them
about the summer. They enjoyed the experience. Blake and Sierra are in the
process of applying to colleges and looking forward to coming back as Summer II
students next year.
Beyond the
paid summer internship, the Project SEED program also encourages students
through competitive college scholarships for former participants, one of which
was won by UVM/Green Mountain LS Project SEED alumna Stephanie Chan of South
Burlington earlier this year.
Chemistry Olympiad Contest for High School Students
Vermont Coordinator Needed!
The
U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad and the International Chemistry
Olympiad are multi-tiered competitions that bring together the world’s
most talented high school students to test their knowledge and skills
in chemistry. Nations around the world conduct examinations to nominate
the most high-performing students for the International Chemistry
Olympiad. But it all starts at the local level. Approximately 10,000
U.S. students between the ages of 13 and 18 enter local Chemistry
Olympiad competitions each March vying for a chance to compete in the
National or International events. For a number of years now High
School students in Vermont have not had the oppportunity to participate
in a local contest because the ACS Green Mountain Local Section has not
had a coordinator. Although we are a small local section, I wonder
if there is someone out there who might be willing to take on this
task? This is a moderately demanding, but very rewarding, job -
requiring interaction with local high schools and keeping to strict
deadlines to ensure that our students are correctly entered in the
contest. but the ACS in Washington DC provides a lot of support.There is more information here, and we can also contact coordinators in neiboring states for advice.
Please let Fiona Case know if you might be interested in this position.
You might be interested in taking a look at this years local exam. I've posted it here: WPCP_012582.pdf. I thought it was quite challenging and brought back memories of my undergraduate years!
Local
Section September Meeting Report
The serious and delirious use of chemistry in the movies
Thursday
September 17th
St. Michaels College

This
presentation began with illustrations of brief mentions of chemistry in
films where you might not expect it like The Graduate; It's a Wonderful Life;
1776; and Bells on Their Toes. Movies which feature science were then
contrasted between: then (the past) and now (the present); the real and the
impossible; drama and comedy; and similar scenes in multiple movies. Featured
clips included such films as Apollo 13; Dante's Peak; Chain
Reaction; It Happens Every Spring; The Man in the White Suit; and Smoke.
Several exiciting live chemical demonstrations relative to the movie scenes were
interspersed with the videos.
 John
Fortman is Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at Wright State University
where he retired in 2001 after 36 years of teaching freshman and
inorganic chemistry. In 1998 he was appointed the Robert J. Kegerreis
Distinguished Professor of Teaching and won seven different teaching
awards over the years at Wright State. In 1998 he received the CMA
Catalyst Award for Outstanding Teaching of College Chemistry.
Dr. Fortman received his B.S. from the University of Dayton in 1961 and
his Ph.D. in physical inorganic chemistry from the University of Notre
Dame in 1965. He has published over 50 papers in chemical education in
addition to his research publications. With Rubin Battino he has
produced a seven DVD set which contains ten hours of chemical
demonstrations for use at middle school through college levels plus a
live show and blooper outtakes. For over 30 years he has done chem demo
outreach shows for middle and high school students in the Dayton area
and continues to inspire and fascinate over 8000 students each year
with at least 17 shows. He has held workshops on teaching and
demonstrations around the country. He has designed alternative courses
for general chemistry, elementary
chemistry and chemistry for elementary education majors. His course for
non-science students was cited as a model in the 1990 AAAS report
on "The Liberal Art of Science: Agenda for Action". The alternative
general chemistry course was developed while he was a member of the
General Chemistry Task Force of the ACS Division of Chemical
Education and starts with organic and biochemistry moving through
materials and finishing with energy while empathizing applications and
bringing in only those principles that are needed as they are
necessary. The course has been characterized as being taught
inside-out, upside-down, and backwards.
John
Fortman's interests in addition to demonstrations and course content
and organization include the use of analogies and videotaped material.
John has been an ACS member since 1962 and was Councilor for the Dayton
Local Section from 1996 to 2004. Since he became an ACS Tour Speaker in
1991 he has given over 310 section talks, visiting 163 of the 190
different local sections while doing 65 tours including all 29
different tours at least once. He has presented in all 50 states and
Puerto Rico.
In 2007 he received the Helen M. Free Award for Public Outreach
ACS Green Mountain Local Section 2009 Outstanding Senior Award in Chemistry
On
May 23rd Fiona and Martin Case presented The 2009 ACS Green Mountain
Local Section
Outstanding Senior Award in Chemistry at Middlebury College. The award
was presented to Michelle Personick whose academic and research
achievements while at Middlebury have indeed been outstanding! Michelle
plans to continue her chemistry studies at graduate school. This was
the first "outstandind senior award" presented by the Green Mountain
Local Section, we hope to expand the program in 2010 and present awards
at other chemistry degree awarding institutions in the state.
Fiona
presents a certificate and book token to Michelle Personick during
the Middlebury College awards ceremony. Roger Sandwick (Head of
Department) and Sunhee Choi, (Michelle's research advisor) join in the
applause.
Message from the Green Mountain Local Section Government Affairs Committee:
The week of April
20, our Government Affairs Committee (Sarah Locknar, Ralph Stuart and Deb
Gaynor) met with Kelly Lucci, Community Liason specializing in Energy from
Senator Sanders' office, and Tricia Coates, State director for
Representative Welch. We spoke with them about the concept of Green
Chemistry and how it is essentially a paradigm shift in the way all chemical
disciplines are practiced. We also discussed HR 2850. This Green
Chemistry bill was co-sponsored by Peter Welch and passed the House in fall of
2007. It is currently stuck in the Senate Commerce, Science and
Transportation Committee and has been there for over a year. Kelly
expressed interest in this bill and said she would bring it to the
attention of Senator Sanders as a co-sponsoring possibility. We also
discussed the importance of fully funding Climate-Change studies and the
associated infrastructure. Now that the Administration admits that
Climate-change exists, we need to make sure that the satellites that
collect data are properly maintained and replaced as
necessary. This will also enable us to monitor the various strategies
that are developed to counteract Global Climate-Change.
Since Peter
Welch is already a champion of Green Chemistry, we decided to take the
opportunity to discuss a topic that ACS has no official stance on, but has
a big impact on chemistry and other small businesses in VT. That
is reauthorization of the SBIR program. Many of you know that SBIR
is short for "Small Business Innovation Research" and it is a mandatory
2.5% of 11 federal agencies' grant budgets (including NIH, NSF, Army, Navy,
etc.) to be set aside SPECIFICALLY for small-business grant applications.
This program is currently funded through a continuing resolution. Full
reauthorization is expected some time this year. The definition of a
"small business" for an SBIR application is less than 500 employees (this
describes all but about 40 VT employers) and minority (or no) venture capital
(VC) ownership or control. It turns out that many congress members
are rethinking the VC restrictions. As a small state with
virtually no VC presence, that would leave VT companies at a significant
disadvantage. We were delighted to find that Rep. Welch has already
indicated his support of maintaining the current definition of a
"small business" for the reauthorized bill and keeping VC-based companies out of
the SBIR grant process. The SBIR programs have been a boon to Vermont
start-up companies. According to the VT Technology Council, in 2007 alone
there were $4.7 million in grants from 8 different agencies awarded to 16 small
businesses around the state. It's small potatoes to
the government, but a huge boost to the businesses that win the
grants.
Overall, the
meetings went quite well. We're really starting to establish a
relationship with Tricia from Peter Welch's office. We've met with
her about 3 times now. It was also great to meet face-to-face with someone
on Senator Sanders' staff. We've only been able to schedule one phone
meeting with his office over the last 3 years (and not for lack of
trying).
More information about the Green Mountain Local Section Government Affairs Commitee (GAC)
2009
Vermont Math and Science Fair
The
2008 Vermont Math and Science Fair as held at Norwich University on
April 5th. Several
ACS Green Mountain LS members served as judges for the event. Fiona,
Martin and Willem were judges for the ACS Green
Mountain Local Section awards for chemistry projects.
First Place ($100 award) - Brian
Ribbans
Mount Saint Joseph Academy (12th Grade), teacher Timothy J. McCue
Abstract:
Biodiesel
made from waste vegetable oil can be a viable alternative to
petroleumbased
fuel. It is possible that biodiesel will be one of the many solutions
for sustainable alternative fuels. This experiment examines the results
of varying the conditions during the transesterification process used
to make biodiesel from waste vegetable oil. Transesterification is the
process of breaking down esters, fat molecules, using alcohol and a
catalyst producing a refined ester,biodiesel, and glycerin as a
by-product. For this experiment varying amounts of methanol, the
alcohol, sodium hydroxide, the catalyst, and temperature will test the
results of the process. To produce high quality biodiesel the results
of the transesterification process requires additional processing to
remove impurities, mainly glycerin, suspended in the oil. Mixing water
with the oil does this. The glycerin and impurities will dissolve in
the water and separate from the oil. A dry washing method is also
possible. Magnesol is used by adding it in with the processed oil to
absorb the impurities and filtering the magnesol with the impurities
out. The completed oil is also tested for completion, the absence of
impurities and pH. Altering the process will have dramatic affect on
the result of the reaction and ultimately the quality of the biodiesel.
The affects of varying the amount of lye, methanol and heat in the
reaction will be apparent by the outcome of the biodiesel with a pH
that is too high, an incomplete reaction and/or biodiesel with too many
impurities. After testing, it was concluded that not using enough
methanol, using too much or too little catalyst, and using a
temperature that is too high or too low will produce poor quality and
unusable biodiesel that is unable to pass one or more of the qualifying
tests.
Joint
Second Place ($50 award) -
Meghan Lavoie,
Mater
Christi School, teacher Michelle Donlon
Abstract:
The
purpose of the science fair project is to determine which fruit
contains the
highest amount of protein-digesting enzymes, bromelain and papain.
These enzymes,
classified as proteolytic, conduct the process of proteolysis in which
protein
catabolism occurs by hydrolysis of the peptide bonds that link amino
acids together in
the
polypeptide chain. Alternatively stated, they break protein down using
a chemical
reaction to split a specific bond that is crucial in linking acids
together to create a
protein-based chain that is a foundation for matter. After research, it
was discovered
this process is easily visible in gelatin because if these certain
enzymes are
incorporated in it, they will prevent it from solidifying. Therefore,
the setting of
gelatin was made the sole determiner of the enzyme levels in eight
different fruits. A
hypothesis was made based on prior research stating that a high
concentration of
bromelain
existed throughout all areas of a pineapple: If various types of fruit
are
tested in gelatin, then pineapple will cause the least amount to
solidify; it contains the
most enzymes. To begin the experimenting procedure, all materials were
gathered
and fruits were sliced and weighed out to 56 grams each. Next, the
gelatin mixture
was prepared according to the instructions on the box, a half cup of
liquid was poured
into each bowl, and the plain gelatin was refrigerated for an hour
before the 56 grams
of fruit were stirred into their respective bowls. They were
refrigerated for 16
additional hours and observations were taken every four. After the
entire procedure
was completed twice and results were averaged, it was concluded the
hypothesis was
correct; pineapple contains the highest amount of protein-digesting
enzymes as
demonstrated by the least amount of gelatin solidifying, 25 percent,
when pineapple
(and
its abundant content of proteolytic enzymes) were incorporated.
Joint
Second Place ($50 award) -
Alex Drost
Windsor High School (10th Grade), Teacher
Jennifer Townsend
Abstract:
The purpose of this experiment
was to explore the relationship between various salt concentrations and conductivity,
and how conductivity effects the amount of hydrogen and oxygen produced by
electrolysis. It was thought that the solutions with higher salt concentrations will have a
greater conductivity, allowing them to produce a greater volume of gas during
electrolysis. Electrolysis is
the process of breaking water down into hydrogen and oxygen gas.
This is achieved by the flow
of electricity through water. Oxygen forms on the electrode carrying the positive charge
because it is the anion in the compound H2O. Hydrogen gas will form on the negative
electrode because it is the cation in the compound. Hydrogen and oxygen gas were collected
by using a simple electrolysis apparatus. Two electrodes were attached to the
positive and negative battery terminals and into a beaker of salt and water solution. The
apparatus was run for a set period of time and the gas that was collected in each
solution was measured and recorded by volume. The results strongly supported the
hypothesis. As the conductivity of the solution increased, more electrons were able to
pass through the solution, allowing more water to be split into hydrogen and oxygen
gasses.
Our
section wins a hospitality award
The
Green Mountain Local Section received an award recognizing our
hospitality to members of the ACS speaker service who visit our
local section. Willem Leenstra received the award for the section
during the ACS Spring 2008 National Meeting in New Orleans.
Outreach:
Chemistry at the VT
Achievement Center (VAC)
Michele
Johnson Reports: I recently (July 13) visited the VT Achievement Center (VAC) to perform chemistry
demonstrations for the pre-K classroom (which my son Liam is
in). We hope to get these kids interested in science
at a young age. We had fun with polymers: I showed them a disappearing
water trick (with sodium polyacrylate, the absorbent polymer used
in diapers) and we all made "super stretchy slime" (in Omya blue no less)
that they were each able to take home. When
I left, I'm sure that many of the kids thought that "chemistry is
cool"!
The
GMLS received a Local Section Innovative Project
Grant to fund a science cart for the early education department at the VT
Achievement Center (VAC)
Results from the 2007 Math and
Science Fair
Results
from the 2008 Math and
Science Fair
Report
from 2006 - photos
and
descriptions of all our 2006 activities
Chemistry
on local TV: download a movie file with Jeff Beyers recent WCAX
appearance talking about the chemistry of chocolate!

Results of our Earth Day Chemistry Haiku Contest are here
Be a Voice for Chemistry - join our Government
Affairs Committee
Report from 2005 - photos
and
descriptions of all our 2005 activities
Report from 2006 - photos
and
descriptions of all our 2006 activities
Officers 2009
Chair..................................... Fiona Case (Fiona's Website)
Chair
Elect.....................................................................Open
Secretary................................................Jody
Chamberlain
Treasurer...................................................... Beth
Medeiros
Councilor..................... Willem Leenstra (Willem's
Website)
Alternate Councilor.............. Martin Case (Martin's Website)
Committee Chairs
Awards.......................................................................
Michele Johnson
PR/Web
Master...................................................................
Fiona Case
Government Affairs
Committee.......................................Sarah Locknar
Newsletter
Editor........................................................ Willem
Leenstra
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